


Souvenirs

by Misskiku



Series: Bederia Goodness [19]
Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:00:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26083846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Misskiku/pseuds/Misskiku
Summary: Gloria returns from the isle of armor, and wants to introduce Bede to Kubfu.Except Kubfu is shy around strangers, and so Gloria tries to get her new Pokemon to warm up to Bede.She decides to do this by telling Kubfu all about Bede. As he sits right beside her.It's fluff. COMPLETE AND UTTER FLUFF.
Relationships: Beet | Bede/Yuuri | Gloria
Series: Bederia Goodness [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1630534
Comments: 18
Kudos: 125





	Souvenirs

Bede saw the knowing smiles Gym Trainers Annette and Teresa were giving him as the automatic doors to the Gym opened. Without turning around, it was obvious why they were grinning at him like that. He shot them both a quick, silencing glare. They wiped their expressions clean, and Bede steeled his heart before turning with practiced grace on his heels to face Gloria. 

"Morning, Bede!" she greeted him with a cute wave, her sudden appearance making his pulse skip as always. 

Already, he could feel an unbidden flush settle on his cheeks. It was difficult not to frown in order to hide it, his brow twitching in frustration at how easily he reacted to her mere presence. 

_ It's just Gloria, _ he reminded himself.  _ Get a hold of yourself, you damn lovestruck fool. _

How could he, when she smiled at him like that? 

"I see you've decided to show up to my Gym, unprompted, once again," Bede said. He folded his arms as though unimpressed, using the action to calm his racing heart. "Surely you have other duties to attend to, this close to the start of the next Challenge." 

She breathed a short, sheepish laugh, and twiddled a lock of her hair. "I know, I know, but I…" Her eyes scattered from his for a moment, before returning. "There's something I want to show you. Do you have some time to spare?"

Not a favour, this time? He'd become so used to her dropping in for random favours from time to time. Or, more often than not, with an armful of confectionery or cakes to share with him and his Gym Trainers. 

Bede cleared his throat to cover up his surprise. "I may be able to spare a moment or two," he said with a shrug. 

The nosy stares of the Gym Trainers bored into Bede's back. They knew fully well that he had ample time to spare, having already prepped well in advance for the upcoming Challenge. He bristled with the urge to shoot them another glare, but couldn't do so in front of Gloria without rousing suspicion. 

"Great!" She chimed, her eyes twinkled as brightly as her smile, and Bede was glad he had his back to the eavesdropping Gym Trainers. His eyes widened a fraction, breath catching, unable to stop the leaping of his heart under the effect of how adorably excited she was. Such a simple thing delighted her so much, and it left him breathless. How could he deny her when he knew it made her so happy, that she would smile at him like that in return?

"Come on," she beckoned. "Let's get some fresh air. It's such a nice day outside!"

Bede bit back his comment that the air inside was plenty fine, and decided to follow Gloria instead. There was no point in arguing semantics when she was giving him an excuse to get away from the prying eyes of the Gym Trainers. He stepped through the doors after her, and they were enveloped in the cool embrace of Ballonlea's earthy air. Gloria walked with a skip in her step, her delight obvious, and she shot him a grin. 

"I just couldn't wait to show this to you," she said as they headed to a quiet, empty spot not far from the Gym. 

Bede eyed her curiously. Despite the fact that her emotions, her face, were an open book, he couldn't discern what it was she was excited about. What was it, exactly, that she wanted to show him? 

Gloria sat down on a mossy ledge and shucked off her bag, patting the spot beside her. If it was anyone else, Bede would have turned up his nose and adamantly refused to sit on such a damp and grotty ledge. He took a deep breath and relented, taking a seat beside her as she dug through her bag. She pulled out a Pokeball, wonder lighting up her dark brown eyes. 

"Here it is!" 

"I surely hope you didn't bring me here to show me a simple Pokeball," Bede teased. 

Gloria gave his shoulder a playful shove, rolling her eyes. "No, you dork," she laughed. "It's the Pokemon inside I wanted to show you." 

Her touch was like lightning, stirring his blood into liquid fire, and he took the chance to shift an inch closer to her. Acting as though he was interested in the Pokeball in her hand. Intrigued by whatever Pokemon she felt was impressive enough to drag him from his Gym, as though he hadn't studied the Galar Pokedex from start to finish. 

She smiled at him, their eyes meeting, and the shortened distance between them was suddenly too small. Too close. He could see the speckles of gold in her eyes, warm like honey, and the array of freckles across her nose and cheeks, normally too faint to make out, were like dark stars painted across her skin. Bede suddenly realised why people spent their lifetimes counting the stars, giving them names, as he wanted to memorise each and every mark on her rosy cheeks. 

"Don't make any sudden movements or noises," Gloria said. "He's a bit shy." 

He straightened, stealing his eyes away from her, and hastily recalled what they were doing here in the first place. 

"Sure." 

Gloria nodded, satisfied, and sent out her Pokemon. The light from the Pokeball faded, revealing a small Pokemon with dark grey fur. It stood on two legs, fuzzy rounded ears twitching as it gazed around for his Trainer. Its black eyes landed on Bede, the Pokemon jolting in shock, and it scrambled to hide behind Gloria. 

"What is  _ that?" _ Bede couldn't stop himself from asking. His mouth dropped open, and he attempted to get a second look at the Pokemon, leaning to the side to catch a glimpse of it behind Gloria. 

She nudged Bede back gently. "See? I told you he was shy! You scared him." 

He looked at her incredulously, feeling the heat of her hand on his shoulder. "I didn't do anything. That Pokemon frightened itself."

"It's not his fault! He's not good around strangers." She pouted at him, before pulling back her hand and turning around to comfort her cowering Pokemon. "Hey, it's okay. He's a friend." 

Bede raised an eyebrow at her, his heart skipping in his chest from the way she referred to him. A shivering tuft of dark grey fur peeked out from around Gloria's waist, and he couldn't stop himself from leaning to the side again to get a better look. Two trembling paws clutched Gloria's shirt, long black claws curled into the fabric. Whatever it was, he hadn't seen anything like it before. He edged closer until his thigh brushed against Gloria's, and he froze with his heart leaping into his throat. He'd been so focused on studying the timid Pokemon that he hadn't noticed how close he was to her. That the earthy air of Ballonlea now carried a hint of soap, a flowery scent that filled his lungs with a rush of heat. 

He was too close, but with the frightened Pokemon peering around Gloria's waist at him, he didn't dare move. He couldn't move, or even breathe, this close to her anyway.

"Don't worry, Kubfu," Gloria said softly, stroking the top of the Pokemon's head. "It's alright. This is Bede. He's a very good friend of mine." 

_ A very good friend. _

Bede's heart thumped deafeningly between his ears, pounding heavily against his ribcage. With every beat, it became louder and harder, sending waves of heat through his veins. His cheeks began to burn, as Gloria continued, unaware of the way he was smouldering beside her. 

"He's actually very nice." She ruffled Kubfu's cheeks gently. "I know he looks like a grump, and he gets this scowl on his face at times, but he's very kind." 

_ Arceus.  _ She was destroying him. Pulling him apart, piece by piece, with her honesty, and he couldn't bring himself to stop her. His heart swelled in a way he'd never felt before. He wanted to hear more. To learn just what she thought of him, and he hung his head by her shoulder, his face ablaze. 

He was crumbling into dust and he didn't want her to stop. 

"Bede is… someone I care a lot about," Gloria continued, as though he wasn't right there beside her. "He means a lot to me. He's always been there for me, even though we didn't exactly get along at the start." She punctuated that sentence with a laugh that skittered down his back and made him shiver. 

Kubfu, the Pokemon hiding behind Gloria, chatted quietly in response. 

"You don't have to be afraid of him," she said. "I trust him. He's never let me down before, and… I really wanted you to meet him." 

Before Bede could let her words sink in, she took his hand, and he jumped at her sudden touch. She hadn't turned enough to see his expression, or the way he'd flushed darkly from his neck to his ears, and held Bede's hand out towards Kubfu. He leant forward instinctively, his shoulder coming into contact with hers, and she finally glanced at him. Their eyes met. A cold sweat of panic trickled down Bede's back as Gloria stared at him. Her hand frozen around his. Kubfu looking curiously at them both. 

Bede yanked himself away from her, stealing his hand back and snapping his head to the side, regretting the fact that he'd let it go this far. That he'd succumbed to her compliments, her honesty, and hadn't tried to stop her at all. He couldn't hide the fact that she'd flustered him now. 

"Bede, are you…?" 

Panic rushed up this throat. "This- This is your fault! S-Saying things like that out of nowhere…!" His lungs emptied, and he habitually tugged at his collar, as though he could hike it higher than it already was.

"You're… blushing…?" 

Her faint gasp of realisation made his blush darken. 

"O-Only because you- you said things like that!" Bede barked, finally turning to face her. Her cheeks reddened, and her eyes widened as if she'd just realised what she'd been saying. 

"Th-There's nothing wrong with what I said!" she squeaked in return. "I was just telling Kubfu about you!" 

"You didn't have to say it like that!"

"L-Like what?" She flushed, staring him down stubbornly. "I didn't say anything weird. It was the truth."

"You can't be serious," he huffed. "If you say things like that about me I might… get the wrong idea, okay?" 

"The wrong idea about what?" 

Bede's heart thumped painfully loud in his chest, the words forming on his tongue. The things he wanted to bark at her, to chide her about, to tell her off for making it sound like she-

"You really have no idea what you sounded like?" He frowned at her, his cheeks still burning. "Saying that you care about me, that I mean a lot to you….I can't believe you can say things like that so easily without realising that you could give someone false hope- uh, the wrong impression, I mean." 

She met his frown with her own. "But it's the truth, and you know that's how I feel about you. What's wrong with that?" 

Bede grumbled deep in his chest, and raked a hand down his face in exasperation. She was too oblivious, but he couldn't just leave it like that… 

"The way you said it…" He forced himself to hold her gaze, measured his words out so his voice didn't crack or stutter. "It sounded as though you had feelings for me." 

She stared blankly at him for a moment before she flushed darkly, her whole body recoiling in shock. 

"Wh-Wh-What?!" Gloria gaped. "I don't- that's not- I didn't mean it like that!" 

"I-I realise that, okay? Calm down!" 

She made a strangled noise in her throat, hanging her head in her hands. Kubfu cooed quietly at her side, tugging on her shirt in concern. 

"I was just… being honest…" she squeaked, her words muffled through her hands. 

"I know." Bede sighed to himself. His heart flopped dejectedly from her unintentional rejection. She always had a way of piercing his heart without realising it. "But you need to recognise that when you say things like that, people might end up getting the wrong idea." 

He knew her well enough to steel himself whenever she spoke like that, but it always ended up hurting him regardless. 

"Sorry…" She peeked up at him, her cheeks burning in embarrassment, and it made his blood sing. "I just wanted Kubfu to be at ease around you, that's all…" 

He cleared his throat. The heat on her cheeks, the demure tremble in her eyes as she looked up at him, made her look so utterly adorable that it became difficult to speak. 

"I'm not sure what Kubfu thinks about me now," he said in an attempt to lighten the mood. 

Gloria straightened, pulling her head from her hands, and Kubfu climbed onto her lap. He looked at Bede properly for the first time, their eyes meeting with intrigue. 

"What is it?" Bede asked. He studied the timid Pokemon, from its round nose and fluffy ears, to its black paws. "You called it 'Kubfu?'" 

Gloria nodded, scritching behind Kubfu's ears. "Yeah. Apparently, he's the 'secret armor' of the Isle of Armor's Master Dojo." 

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" 

She laughed. "I guess not." 

The Isle of Armor… he recalled Ms Opal mentioning it in passing recently. 

"This little guy's a Fighting Type," Gloria said. "He's really shy, and I thought that if I introduced him to the people who are dear to me, that he might open up a bit more." 

Bede wondered who else she'd introduced Kubfu to. Who else had she visited before him? 

He quickly dashed that thought away. It didn't matter. 

Kubfu made an affirmative grunt, pumping his paws in a remarkably similar fashion to the way Gloria pumped her fists in determination.

"Also…" Gloria looked at Bede again, a coy smile on her face. "There's another reason I came to see you."

There it was again. His heart thumped harder in his chest, reacting to the suggestion behind her words. He wondered if she was being deliberately vague, toying with the strings of his heart.

"What is it?" he asked, raising an eyebrow calmly. 

Her eyes shifted between his. "Well, it's a bit… embarrassing. Could you close your eyes for me?" 

He reflexively stiffened. "Why?" 

"It's embarrassing," she repeated, and pursed her lips bashfully. "I can't give it to you until you close your eyes." 

He was definitely getting the wrong idea now, his mind racing as he tried to come up with any other reason why she'd want him to close his eyes. 

"Please, Bede?" She leant a fraction closer, searching his gaze, his face, and pleading with him. 

He hated the way his heart thrummed when she spoke his name like that, how it was impossible for him to deny her. He hated it the way he hated her random visits and unpredictability favours, how she could lean so close to him so casually, batting her eyes at him until he gave in. 

He hated it. Everything he thought he hated about her were the things he loved most.

"Alright, fine," Bede relented. "But don't you try anything weird." 

She pouted at him. "I won't!" 

Kubfu tilted his head curiously at Bede, the small Fighting Type slowly warming up to him. Bede straightened, trying to calm his fluttering nerves, and closed his eyes as requested.

"Don't open them until I say to, okay?" Gloria urged. 

With his eyes closed, she sounded so much closer. Her voice so much clearer. He tried to focus his hearing on her, on the sound of a zipper, the faint shuffling as she moved. Slender fingers took hold of his wrist, and he couldn't stop himself from jolting. His blood crackled alight as her fingers slid around his wrist in a featherlight touch. Thoughts span in his head as he waited in pensive silence, feeling only the brush of her fingers and the heavy thumping of his heart. Something firmer than her fingers wound around his wrist, her touch falling away. 

Gloria exhaled a sharp sigh. "There. You can open your eyes now."

He drew his eyes open, staring down at the strange bracelet of intertwined twigs around his wrist. It was knobbly and buckled in places, the pattern uneven, and it hung awkwardly and too loose where she'd tied it. It was the last thing he'd expected to see. 

"What… is this meant to be?" He held up his wrist, and the bracelet slid a few inches down his arm. 

"It's, um, a Galarian cuff. It's unique to the Isle of Armor. They're… usually given to Galarian Slowpoke to evolve them or as souvenirs…" 

"Please tell me you didn't pay for something as haphazardly crafted as this," Bede scoffed. "Whatever you paid for it, it was too much, I can see that much." 

Gloria curled her bottom lip, shifting her eyes away. "I… didn't buy it," she said quietly as a soft blush settled high on her cheeks. 

Bede's heart skipped. His eyes fell to the poorly woven bracelet, the amateurish pattern that screamed handmade, and he suddenly regretted his words. 

"I wanted a gift like that to have a bit more meaning, so I learnt how to make them myself and… well…" Gloria blushed in embarrassment. "I-I know it's not that good. I can take it back, if you'd like-" 

She reached for his wrist and he yanked his hand away. "It's fine," he said quickly. 

Her eyes widened. "Are you sure? I could make another one. I think I have enough Galarian Twigs…" 

"I said that it's fine," he repeated, firmer this time. Heat swam across his cheeks, and he held his wrist, and the bracelet, close to his chest. "I didn't realise that you had made this yourself. That… isn't something you can put a price on." 

"What does that mean?" 

"I'm not giving it back. That's what it means." 

The surprise on her face, the relief that filled her eyes and brightened her smile, was worth admitting that to her. 

"It's a bit of a mess, but that's the first one that I managed to get right," she said with a faint laugh. 

Does that mean…? 

"You haven't made one for anyone else?" he asked before he could stop himself.

"Well, yeah." She laughed again. "I'm not very good with my hands, so making one was difficult enough. Just look at how it turned out."

His lungs filled with air, and he suddenly felt weirdly lighthearted. He stared down at the bracelet, the sight of it wrapped around his wrist relaxing him somehow. The only one in the world.

"I hope it's okay. You don't have to keep wearing it if you don't want to but… as long as you keep it, that's enough for me." 

He realised then that he felt no desire at all to remove it. It was his.

That was enough for him. 

**Author's Note:**

> I've been dying to write this fic for AGES and i decided to churn it out right now because i got hit with motivation and IT HAPPENED. 
> 
> I tried to change up my writing style a little bit, and I hoped I haven't messed it all up because of that ;v; (it's probably so slight that you can't tell anyway)


End file.
